The Opelousas courier., 1887-06-04
A Skirmish with the Cossaeks.

About the middle of autumn we made
o reconnaissance in the direction of
Rasgrad, to endeavor to discover the
strength Of the enemy there. Three
regiments of Cossacks made mp the
force. and we marched all day and part
OF the night before we came in the vi
entity of the enemy. On the morning
OF the second day it was reported that
q considerable detachment of Turkish
lrregulars was encamped a short dis
lance in front of u.s.. We had been
moving during the night with as little
noise as possible, and had bivouacked
in tho rain without building a fire, in
order to give no notice of our approach
to the enemy's pickets. It was only
just daybreak when the orders to
march were given, and the column
proceed d cautiously with a few scouts
In advance. In q half hour or so we who
overriding a little ahead of the coll
umn could see the characteristic conf
cal Turkish tents assembled in a little
valley a short distance beyond. At the
same instant our scouts engaged the
enemy's pickets, and the column halted.
The camp in sight was only a largo
outpost, aud the General Immediately
gave orders for II regiment to form
and charge through the camp. We
could see the men of the designated
regiment uncover and cross themselves,
and in a moment the head of the de-
tachment was rapidly moving past us.
Among the officers rode the Major,
my old friend of the Dobrud-
scha, who, unknown to me. had
been promoted to a LieutenantHColo-
nelcy, and transferred to&another regi-
ment. As he dashed past he made q
gesture of recognition and waved his
hand for me to follow. I believe it was
more the horses fault than my own,
for certainly I never had a deliberate
intention of riding in q charge if /
could help it, but before I knew it /.
was at the Majors side. Off we went
at a trot, changing our formation to
regimental front. Then, in an irregu-
lar line, much broken by the inequali-
ties of tho ground, we swept down the
slope OF a gal'op. There was some
firing, and q few Cossacks fell, but /
doubt if anybody heard a shot. The
laundering of the hoofs, the shaking of
the grain bags, the rafting of the cook
ing utensils, and the resounding whacks
of the nagajkas filed the air with a
multitude of noises which drowned all
other sounds. The exhilaration of the
! moment was supreme. Horses as we'll
as men felt its unique stimulus, and
we rushed through that camp, sweep
ing it away as the sudden cloud-burst
in the Rockies tears out the bed of the
arroyo. It Was,one of those rare mo-
ments of life when~a al n of indi-
viduality is merged in that utterly
overwhelming feeling of exaltation, 1re
that intoxication of magnetism, which
often possesses large masses of men
moved by some grand and simultaneous
impulse. It was, perhaps, after all a
very trivial affair from O military point
| of view, but the sensation / experienced
was by no means insignificant OF easily
forgotten.
Part of the Turkish force took to
fight in time and escaped; those who
remained to defend their camp were
sabred, spitted like fowl on the ~lances,
or captured and led back to the main
column at the end of a lariat. The
indls of this little incident was fully
as impressive as the charge itself, al
though in quite another way. After
we made camp that night the men of
the regiment which had engaged the
enemy were drawn up in line with I'M
covered heads, and sang a religious
hymn in chorus. How different now
were those faces which a few hours
before had been distorted with the
cruel expressions of hatred of the in
fdel, Of glorifed by tho excitement of
the charge or with the consciousness of
victory! Uniforms apart, the men
looked like o rank of devout, peaceful
farmers, bronzed by the sun in the
fields, and begrimed with the dust of
agriculture. The hymn rolled forth in
fg,sint, sad cadenees tuned to q minor
s1E, like most of the native melodies.
Yong the ranks a gap purposely left
Ere and there showed where q comrade
! I'd stood the day before. Although I
} attld not catch the words they sang,
ke'signiieance of the hymn could not
be mistaken. Many rough hands
brushed fearful eyes before the last
mournful note died away, and the regi-
ment then dispersed about the camp
with a quiet step, as if the least noise
we're an insult to the memory of the
aead.-F. D. Mil'et, an Hagper's
| HFn1nSSooo